DISNEY TIME for this Aussie family of 4! Nov/Dec 2016

[Jade-Elise]

Hello everybody! We are planning our trip to Japan with 2 little munchkins in tow aged 7 & 8. Woo hoo!
I AM SO EXCITED! We went to Japan in 2012 without the kiddies and my hubby wouldn't let me go to Disney, But now it is happening!

[EDITED AREA]

Here is our plan thus far, which has changed and probably will change:

Day 1 - Fly to Japan, flight is all day, land at 6:30pm and try and make our way to TDR

Day 2 - DisneyLand (I am PRAYING we are OK for this. However, I am feeling maybe we will not rush around collecting fastpasses and crazy stuff and just take in the park this day, and do the rushing around another day.)

Day 3 - DisneySea, maybe same plan as day 2. Take our time, absorb atmosphere?

Day 4 & 5 - Park Hopper - Grab the fast passes and go on all the rides we haven't done yet and see the shows we missed!

Day 6 - Free day in TDR, Ikspari shopping, visit the other hotels (is that allowed?)

Day 7 to Day 9 - Travel and stay with Friends in Toyohashi

Day 10 - Travel to Hakone - Hakone free pass around see the pirate ships etc.

Day 11 - Another day in Hakone?

Day 12 to Day 20 - Travel to Shibuya Tokyo for 8 nights in an AirBnB apartment.
Various Day trips, Ghibli, Odaiba (Lego/Science/Toyota/Gundam), Yokohama, Asakusa, Ueno, Pokemon Center, Fuji-Q Highland

[/EDITED AREA]


We leave Aus on 27th Nov and return on 16th Dec. Spending 5 days at Okura bay with a 4-day passport, not sure what to do on the last day. Ikspari? Chef Mickey? I am sure we can figure out something to do!
Then we travel to visit friends for 3 days, back to Tokyo for 7 days of exploration, then off to Karuizawa for some snow action (even if it is artificial). That's the basic plan in a nutshell, although not set in stone (apart from visiting our friends, that date is fixed!) I thought Disney first would be the best bet and allow least amount of hotel shuffling.

I have been following TDR Explorer and The Honourable Rat in getting some great information but even with my information gorging I am finding there just ends up being more questions than answers. Everything google Disney related is geared towards the big American WDW and DL. I'm finding my head spinning some days.

I am in the process of compiling a daily itinerary with lists of rides, fast pass, restaurants, shows etc. just like this one - http://www.wdwforgrownups.com/articles/how-create-trip-planning-spreadsheet but there is SO much to fit into 4 days! Seriously considering doing an extra day! (5 days overkill? Or would you totally do 5 days too?)

Any resources helpful in planning? Please share!

Biggest thing making my head whirl at the moment is budget. I was hoping that about $200AUD a day would suffice for food for the 4 of us, but checking out the meal prices, holy banana peels, we might struggle! Japan food was always so cheap and plentiful from our previous experience but Disney food seems to be way up there in cost. Of course we are paying for shows and stuff as well, I get that, I just want to make sure I get the best experience possible. I'm looking at; Horizon Bay, Cape Cod Cook Off, Polynesian Terrace and Diamond Horseshoe, not including the awesome Alice in Wonderland themed place we will end up in, and Chef Mickey (although not a lot of great reviews for that?)

Would I be apt in saying finding a 7/11 close by (i believe above Maihama St) would be good for breakfast and snacks??? Is it ok to bring in snacks? (I know you aren't supposed to here for Dreamworld/Movieworld/Seaworld but we do anyway...)

Question about character photos? Apparently very hard because Japanese locals 'mob' the characters? No lines? omg... what do we do about that?

I am excited and a bit loopy from the MONTHS (seriously bought the Japan tickets in Feb, been nuts since) of information delving.

Can't get airport shuttle transfer from Narita because our flight is so late. So like 3 trains and then monorail. Monorail isn't included in the hotel fare correct?

I wish we had a Disney travel agent here in Aus for this.... *sigh*

Thanks if you read this far, sorry if this is an annoying post to regulars. Any and all advice is greatly appreciated. If anyone out there is happy to pick your brain i'll be appreciative!

Warm Regards and Much Appreciation x

 

[Karin1984]

What I have gathered already for my own trip.

4 days: I have the same problem, always afraid it won't be enough, but we should be good if you don't travel during high season.

Snacks: tdrexplorer advises to bring them with you, so I guess no problem

Monorail:indeed not included from Japanese Law (i think?) All forms of transportation needs to be paid for.

I keep an eye on the app with waiting times and when which rides run out of FPs. For Disneyland steps 1 and 2 will be: get fp for Monsters Inc, ride Pooh. After fp for Monsters is used, get one for Splash. Big Thunder Mountain doesnt seem to run out of fp very quickly so can be done after that etc. I sort of have a vague idea for a full touring plan, but I am on my phone now. Will not know if it will work till I am there anyway

For Disney sea I start with: get fp for Tower of Terror, ride Journey to the center of the earth. Skip Toy Story as it's identical to the US or right before closing.

For characters I would be a bit more agressive and try to have something to attract the characters attention (disney out fit, plushie etc) and I think I will be taller than the average Japanese person which might help too.

Transportation: what time does your flight arrive? I have no idea till when the trains are running, but after a long flight, late in the evening with luggage and 2 young children, I would budget for a taxi.

 

[MomoMama]

Here are few things I know...

Food: Tokyo Disney prohibits bringing outside food/drinks to the parks, unless you have food allergies. But I think this policy is enforced for meals (such as bento box or sandwiches) , and not for snacks. I had allergen-free snacks for DD just in case (she ended up not needing them) in my purse, and CMs who did bag checks never said anything. Also I did see some people eating snacks brought from outside, which didn't seem for allergies. If you want to bring meals, they have picnic area set up just outside of the park entrances.

Restaurant: Chef Mickey breakfast is limited only to the Ambassador Hotel guests (not including the check-in day).

Airport Transfer: Bus ride from Narita to Disney takes more than 1 hour. Taxi for that distance would be very expensive. Limo bus to Shin-Urayasu area runs later, the last bus being around 8:30 pm. You can take a train from Shin-Urayasu to Maihama, then the hotel shuttle from there if you can make it to the last shuttle bus. I would probably take taxi from Shin-Urayasu to make it easier.

Enjoy your trip!

 

[wanderlust7]

You might be able to take the Narita Express, then it would just be one transfer at Tokyo Station. We stayed at Sheraton Tokyo Bay and they had a hotel shuttle from Maihama. Hotel Okura might have that too. If you have a lot of luggage, you might want to use a delivery service (takuhaibin) to get your luggage from the airport to the hotel (~2000 yen per large bag). It'll get there the next day, so you'll still need an overnight bag. A taxi or private shuttle might cost about 18,000 yen - that would certainly be the easiest!

I found the food at Tokyo Disneyland to be a better deal than DL (Anaheim) and WDW. At counter service places, DH and I would each get a set meal and the kids (4 and 7 years old) would each get a kid's meal. It usually came to about 5000 yen. We really liked the food at Hungry Bear (pork curry) and at Vulcania. Ristorante di Canaletto (sit down restaurant) was also really good and I thought at 8500 yen for lunch (2 adult sets, 2 kids sets), a great deal for the quality food we got.

If your kids are into cars, Tokyo Megaweb at Odaiba has driving experiences that my 7 year old really liked. First there's a short training, then a test (stop, figure 8, etc), then he got to go around the track, at the end they gave him a "driver's license" complete with his picture printed on it. All for like 500 yen! He also really liked the Cup of Noodles Museum in Yokohama. We made our own cup noodle flavor (300 yen/cup) - color the cup, pick the toppings, picked the soup base, they vacuum seal it, then we put it into a cute inflatable bag. We also did the activity where we made our own noodles from scratch, that was fun too.

Have a great trip!

 

[Agent 86]

I'll try to respond to some of your queries.

1. Snacks - No problems. We often have a few chocolate bars, etc in our bag as a snack.

2. Breakfast - Yes. 7-11 should have something that would satisfy everyone. But, I personally love the Japanese bakeries which have a wide assortment of options. Maccas also usually has a 100 Yen menu.

3. 4 vs. 5 days - I *think* four days should be enough, although I don't have any children (yet), so I'm not sure how much extra time they require for getting around, having rests, etc. I'm also not sure what the expected crowd levels are for the dates you're visiting Disney. Obviously the more crowded it is, the harder it will be for you to do everything. I would try to prioritise what you want to do and see. Also, as a huge Disney fan, I would always say "the more the better", especially if I was staying close by and if I needed to take breaks during the day (e.g. if the kids need a nap).

4. Resources - I think you've already found the best ones - tdrexplorer, Honourable Rat and these forums.

5. Daily food budget - I'd be highly surprised if $200 (AUD) is insufficient. We certainly don't spend $100 (AUD) for food for two adults per day, UNLESS we eat somewhere like Magellan's. The Australian dollar isn't doing great against the Yen at the moment, but it's normally pretty strong. I wouldn't worry about this too much. I would just focus on having a hearty lunch and dinner so that you don't have to worry about snacking in-between.

6. Character Photos - A lot of characters have dedicated appearance locations, with established ropes / barriers for lines. Obviously in those instances, there are no "mobs". For the free-roaming characters, yes there can be "mobs" who surround the character. Be polite, but reasonable. Basically, wait your turn (i.e. judge who was there before you) and then jump in. I've had some characters who seemed to ... zero in on my confusion and grab me / beckon me for a photo. And others, you just have to do your best. It also depends upon the character - Marie from Aristocats is crazy popular. And I wouldn't want to even imagine the kind of crowd that a free-roaming Duffy (the Disney Teddy Bear) would attract.

Good luck with your planning.

 

[Jade-Elise]

Wow wow thank you so much! So many replies already. It is super appreciated!!

I just tallied up the hours if we are there from open to close (including an hour before opening for line up) and it will be about 15 hours a day, 60 hours total. That's double my work week in 4 days, I think we may have plenty of time.
We are lucky as we only have 2 people in our party (my daughter and I) interested in roller coasters, whilst the other 2 (my husband and son) are happy to skip these completely. We've never been to a Disney park ever before, so very excited!

Crowd Forecast - I think I got from TDR explorer our days will be fairly average. Monday 28/12 - Thursday 01/12 and I am assuming from past years the Christmas decorations and shows will be running at this time. TDR mentioned that it is very popular for couples going on dates? But I am hoping because we are there from Monday - Thursday there won't be huge crowds. DisneySea seems to be much busier than DisneyLand on the forecasts: http://tdrnavi.jp/forecast/disneyland?lang=en http://tdrnavi.jp/forecast/disneysea?lang=en

Thanks for the advice with travel. It is still a bit of a mind boggle But I'll have a sit down and take your suggestions. The hotel gave me this route which I really was unhappy about, considering there was an included airport shuttle. Adds up to about 2 hours of travel making it around 9-10pm by the time we arrive after our 9 hour flight.

1.Departure: Narita Airport Terminal 2·3 Keisei-Narita Sky Access line(Access Express) Bound for Haneda Airport Domestic Terminal -About 30-35 minute
2.Transfer:In 15 minutes Higashi Matsudo st. JR-Musashino line(Local) Bound for Tokyo -About 20-25 minutes -
3.Arrival: JR Maihama st. Train Fare 1,250 yen per an adult Train Fare 630 yen per a child
4.Transfer:In 5 minutes Maihama st. Rotary Please take a Taxi at Maihama st. Taxi Fare 1,000 yen and over
5.Arrival:About 10-15 minutes Hotel Okura Tokyo Bay


Oh Agent 86, where is the Maccas? Is it close by to the hotels? It's the awesome dining experiences which I am thinking will blow our budget. I think i'll have to just try for 2 'meals' a day and snacking in between. I don't think I could afford sit down Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner at all the show/character restaurants. I was weeping when we bought tickets the yen was at 0.86 and I should have exchanged then. Oh well...


I am surprised the Chef Mickey is only for Ambassador guests. From what I read I thought all the On Site hotels were open for Disney Resort guests? Any suggestions for filling in our Friday? I think looking at 60 hours of park time might be plenty, so it will just be a relax day and explore other parts of the Resort.

OH TOKYO MEGA WEBB IS ON THE LIST My son will love it!! Our list includes: Pokemon Mega Centre, LegoLand, Ghibli Museum, Science Center and Sega Land! (Maybe Fuji-Q Highland) If I had more time we would so go to Universal Studios because this Muggle never got her letter I don't know if we will ever make it to America... Japan is the closest we'll get to Disney or Universal Studios.

Did I say thank you already? THANK YOU

 

[Agent 86]

Oh Agent 86, where is the Maccas? Is it close by to the hotels? It's the awesome dining experiences which I am thinking will blow our budget. I think i'll have to just try for 2 'meals' a day and snacking in between. I don't think I could afford sit down Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner at all the show/character restaurants.

I could have sworn there was a McDonalds at Ikspiari, but a quick google indicates that I'm wrong. Maybe it was a similar burger place? Actually, I might have been thinking of the equivalent to Ikspiari at Paris Disneyland. A 7-11 should still provide you with appropriate breakfast material. Personally, although the meals at Tokyo Disney are a little on the small side, I find them filling and don't have any need to snack between lunch and dinner other than for the novelty value of the snack (e.g. the green aliens or an odd flavoured popcorn). I also find the meals to be pretty good value given that the "sets" come with the main meal component, a side salad (or similar) and drink.

 

[Agent 86]

Ghibli Museum

If you do go to the Studio Ghibli Museum and if you book in advance, check and double check your booked tickets. We booked in advance, but somehow during the booking process the date of our planned visit was changed. We didn't discover this until we turned up to the museum and they wouldn't let us in! Thankfully, they made an exception for us.

 

[Jade-Elise]

(I have no idea how to do those quotey things)

Maccas - Yeah I did a little search and it was quite north which is why I wanted to double check. I will try not to worry too much about food budget then, and keep my $200 p/day then if we have leftovers more souvenirs for us!
Japan set's are the bomb diggedy, trying to tell the kids when we order food we'll get rice, miso, green tea and pickled salad with everything is mind boggling to them. Lucky my kids LOVE Japanese food. My son particularly love Takoyaki!

Ghibli - Ah yes, we bought LAWSON tickets last time with help from native speakers It is so amazing! I am glad they gave you an exception and let you in anyway.
I think my husband and I are bigger fans than the kids as we would be called OTAKU's in Japan. The kids know of Ghibli but thrown in with their Disney/Dreamworks/Netflix our Ghibli movies don't get much run time. I've seen Totoro, Kiki, Ponyo and Howl so many times. Never gets bad

 

[wanderlust7]

Japan set's are the bomb diggedy, trying to tell the kids when we order food we'll get rice, miso, green tea and pickled salad with everything is mind boggling to them. Lucky my kids LOVE Japanese food. My son particularly love Takoyaki!

I love takoyaki too! There's a takoyaki "museum" at Odaiba, in the same building as Legoland Center. It's not really a museum, but a food court with like 6 different takoyaki stalls. We only had enough room in our stomachs to try the variety plates at 2 stalls, but they were both yummy.

We got our Legoland Center tickets through JTB (japanican.com), it was a little cheaper.

 

[MomoMama]

I am surprised the Chef Mickey is only for Ambassador guests. From what I read I thought all the On Site hotels were open for Disney Resort guests? Any suggestions for filling in our Friday? I think looking at 60 hours of park time might be plenty, so it will just be a relax day and explore other parts of the Resort.

Chef Mickey Breakfast seems to be only for the Ambassador guests. But you can still go there for lunch or dinner, if you can get priority seating.

 

[aussie shaz]

If you like Pokemon, Sega, ODaiba etc, you may like to read my trip report. We did Tokyo, Osaka (including Universal) and Disney. We had our 2 boys with us but they are 12/15.

http://www.disboards.com/threads/weve-been-to-japan-now-a-tr.3481415/

 

[Jade-Elise]

Is Chef Mickey worth going to in terms of character dining??

There is nothing like the Cinderella's WDW dining experience right??

Thanks Aussie Shaz! Yay I will go read

 

[Jade-Elise]

Updated our plan in the original post... We scrapped Karuizawa and the fake snow.

Reading your TR I am thinking the 8 nights in Tokyo could be too much?

I am so lost in the whole Hakone/Fuji thing. I was considering staying a night in Hakone and 2 nights at Fuji but it's expensive, and lots of travelling times and trying hard not to have to lug our luggage around. Considering we Hakone is a 'no luggage' type of place. Thinking better just to do Fuji-Q highland from Shinjuku station like everyone else seems to do. Just worried about 2 hour train ride home from the park. We aren't going for the coasters, just Thomas Land and Evangelion World.

I also wanted to go to Universal Studios, just for HP world. Considered doing Kyoto or Osaka to split our time up. But I am wary of over extending the kids, and our own stress levels. Weary of travel times.

Also, what about visiting TDR under complete tourist eyes first 2 days, then super planned the last 2 days? I don't want to rush passed all the characters at opening for Fast Passes, but I don't want the day ruined by whining kids Is there a balance?

I know this is veering away from TDR a bit, but any advise would be helpful

 

[Agent 86]

Also, what about visiting TDR under complete tourist eyes first 2 days, then super planned the last 2 days? I don't want to rush passed all the characters at opening for Fast Passes, but I don't want the day ruined by whining kids Is there a balance?

It really depends whether you want to see and do everything or whether you're happy to maybe have a top 3 to 5 things to accomplish each day. If it helps, the characters who are there at opening generally appear throughout the day, so you won't necessarily miss your chance at seeing them. Also, if you find one of the English speaking cast members, they can normally tell you who is appearing throughout the park and when and where (if you're looking for someone in particular).

As previously mentioned, even if planning for all four days, I think it's a good idea to have a shortlist of your must see and do activities. I'd also see what information is available, if any, about closures / refurbishments as that can impact the wait times (e.g. when we last went, Journey was closed so Tower of Terror was absorbing a lot of the thrill seekers resulting in very long wait times). It will be hard to keep four people happy even at the best of times, so if everyone no,images their top 3 things, that may help to manage expectations and limit the planning required.

 

[Jade-Elise]

It really depends whether you want to see and do everything or whether you're happy to maybe have a top 3 to 5 things to accomplish each day. If it helps, the characters who are there at opening generally appear throughout the day, so you won't necessarily miss your chance at seeing them. Also, if you find one of the English speaking cast members, they can normally tell you who is appearing throughout the park and when and where (if you're looking for someone in particular).

As previously mentioned, even if planning for all four days, I think it's a good idea to have a shortlist of your must see and do activities. I'd also see what information is available, if any, about closures / refurbishments as that can impact the wait times (e.g. when we last went, Journey was closed so Tower of Terror was absorbing a lot of the thrill seekers resulting in very long wait times). It will be hard to keep four people happy even at the best of times, so if everyone no,images their top 3 things, that may help to manage expectations and limit the planning required.

Thanks Agent 86, I agree with having a short list of accomplishments. The TR I read seem to be all about running around for the first 30 minutes or so, for me sounds stressful! Expecially after a 9 hour flight, 2 hours of travel time and how ever many hours in immigration. Maybe I will lower my expectations for the first day at least, and have a guideline for the day, show times, restaurants etc. Our Aussie parks are so laid back, I've never planned for a trip to a theme park before! And we have been to 7+ here!

Luckily at this stage, only Thunder Mountain is out (the mine cart one?) The only one upset is DD8 lol, she is the thrill seeker.

*I found the quotey thing!*

 

[Agent 86]

The TR I read seem to be all about running around for the first 30 minutes or so, for me sounds stressful!

That's what we do, but not everyone has to do that. We do it because we want to do *everything* and even then, we often fail or have to make choices (e.g. watch a show or stand in line for a ride). The crowd levels also have a huge impact. If it's pouring rain, then the rain should keep crowds levels at a more manageable level. If it's a perfectly pleasant day, then the good weather will attract a larger crowd. As long as everyone managed their expectations, especially your children, I don't see any reason why you wouldn't have an awesome time. The crowds are almost part of the ... charm of Tokyo Disney.

 

[Agent 86]

Luckily at this stage, only Thunder Mountain is out (the mine cart one?)

That's a decent ride to be down for refurbishment since it often closes in the lightest of rainfall. So, there is a chance that even if it was "open", it would be "closed" due to the weather.

 

[Agent 86]

Our Aussie parks are so laid back, I've never planned for a trip to a theme park before!

Have you been to a Disney theme park before? The overseas theme parks, especially Disney and Universal, really don't compare in any way, shape or form to Dreamworld, SeaWorld, Movie World, etc. The theming alone makes them a magical place to be, especially in DisneySea.

 

[Jade-Elise]

Have you been to a Disney theme park before? The overseas theme parks, especially Disney and Universal, really don't compare in any way, shape or form to Dreamworld, SeaWorld, Movie World, etc. The theming alone makes them a magical place to be, especially in DisneySea.

Thanks Agent 86 Lots of great responses!! We have never been to a theme park overseas, in fact, my kids have only been overseas to Fiji (for a wedding) and on a cruise where we stopped in Vila and Lifou. I've only been to Malaysia (school trip) and my hubby and I to Japan for 2 week honeymoon. That is our complete travel history! We haven't even done much of Australia, definitely travel novices!

I am trying to just be open minded about it all. Maybe we could have the plan but try and go at a steady pace. I think we just want to BE there, sounds strange, but we just want to go to Japan, go to Disney. /end goal. My hubby can't even tell me what he wants to accomplish in the whole trip. We just want to experience, live, breathe Japan. I love the food and shopping, as well as the Disney themeing. We have low expectations huh? LOL! My DD8 is the most excited about rides and such, she has her list of rides. I want character restaurants and shows, and my hubby and DS7 are pretty chilled.